Microbiological characteristics of white whale (Delphinapterus leucas) from capture through extended captivity

For proper husbandry, it is important to sample the environment from which marine mammals for captivity are taken and to monitor the animals frequently over an extended period. Samples for microbiological analysis were collected from 20 beluga whales during capture in the Churchill River. Seven animals were retained in three U.S. aquaria with anal and blowhole cultures taken over a 945-d period. Bacteria isolated from whales at capture included many soil and water forms found also in environmental samples. Pasteurella multocida was isolated from three whales at capture and infrequently several times in captivity from two of these which were studied the most intensively. From this latter group maintained at Mystic (CT) Marinelife Aquarium, the most frequently recovered bacteria from both animals were members of the Achromobacter-Acinetobacter-Alcaligenes-CDC IV E-Moraxella-Pasteurella-Pseudomonas group, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas putrefaciens, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Streptococcus faecalis, and Vibr...